Barbell Shrugged

In this episode, Doug Larson, Dr. Mike Lane, and Coach Travis Mash break down the real-world science of training for aesthetics: getting leaner, building muscle, and looking better without losing sight of performance, health, and longevity. Mike opens with a wild DEXA scan story about breast implants and body composition testing, explaining how implants can skew lean mass and bone density numbers. The takeaway is simple: body composition tools are useful, but only when you understand what they are actually measuring.
The crew then moves into the big rocks of physique change: nutrition, training volume, cardio, consistency, and choosing a style of training you can actually sustain. Travis shares how endurance work, reduced alcohol, better hydration, and family-wide nutrition habits helped him get leaner, while Doug and Mike explain why diet is usually the fastest lever for fat loss and lifting is the signal that helps preserve or build muscle. Whether you love bodybuilding, powerlifting, CrossFit, martial arts, climbing, or just want to look good and feel capable, the message is clear: train most days, eat mostly whole foods, and build habits you can repeat for years.
Links:
Doug Larson on Instagram
Coach Travis Mash on Instagram

For years, one of the biggest criticisms of CrossFit has been that, Given every workout is different, it's difficult to measure and track training stress in a meaningful way. Dr. Jerry Mangine joins Doug Larson, Travis Mash, and Mike Lane to discuss a decade of research aimed at solving that problem. Jerry breaks down how his team analyzed every CrossFit Open workout ever performed, developed equations to quantify workload across different movements, and created a system for classifying workouts based on total work performed and the rate at which athletes complete it. The conversation explores why some workouts produce specific adaptations, how coaches can better manage training stress, and what the future of CrossFit programming might look like when workload can finally be measured objectively.
 
The discussion expands into broader athletic performance, including the impact of body type on CrossFit success, critical power testing, VO2 max, lactate tolerance, gymnastics versus weightlifting backgrounds, and how AI may soon automate performance analysis across sports. Jerry also shares his vision as founding director of Kennesaw State's new Human Sport Performance and Well-Being Research Center, where researchers are developing new technologies to help athletes and coaches make smarter decisions. Whether you're a CrossFit athlete, strength coach, sport scientist, or simply interested in how performance is measured and improved, this episode offers a fascinating look at where athletic monitoring and training optimization are headed next.
Links:
Doug Larson on Instagram
Coach Travis Mash on Instagram

Peptides have exploded in popularity over the last few years, but separating legitimate science from marketing hype has become increasingly difficult. In this episode, Dr. Kyle Gillett joins Doug Larson, Dr. Mike Lane, and Coach Travis Mash for a deep dive into the world of peptides, growth hormone secretagogues, GLP-1 medications, and emerging therapies that may shape the future of performance, recovery, body composition, and longevity. They unpack what peptides actually are, which compounds have meaningful clinical research behind them, and where caution is still warranted, especially when it comes to growth factors, angiogenesis, and potential cancer-related concerns.
The conversation covers BPC-157, TB-500, Tesamorelin, Retatrutide, Selank, PT-141, myostatin inhibitors, mitochondrial peptides, and the next generation of obesity and metabolic health drugs. Along the way, the group explores practical questions athletes and health-conscious individuals are asking every day: Can peptides help recovery? Are there compounds that improve cognition or libido? What are the tradeoffs of GLP-1 medications? And how close are we to drugs that can meaningfully increase muscle mass the way GLP-1s improve fat loss? Whether you're curious about performance enhancement, injury recovery, healthy aging, or simply trying to understand what all the peptide buzz is about, this episode provides a balanced, practical look at one of the fastest-moving areas in modern health and performance.
Links:
Doug Larson on Instagram
Coach Travis Mash on Instagram

In this episode, Doug Larson, Dr. Mike Lane, and Coach Travis Mash break down what it actually means to train tactical athletes such as police officers, firefighters, military personnel, SWAT teams, cadets, and first responders who may be called into high-stress physical situations at any time. The conversation starts with the Enhanced Games and the reality of performance-enhancing drugs in sport, then quickly shifts into the tactical world, where "second place" can mean getting hurt, losing control of a situation, or not making it home. Mike explains why the first step is always a job-task analysis: Is the athlete a cadet preparing for a career, a police officer who is always "in season," a firefighter working 24-hour shifts, or a military operator cycling between deployment and training blocks?
The team digs into the practical training model: tactical athletes need strength, aerobic capacity, anaerobic conditioning, mobility, grip, durability, and the ability to stay calm under stress. They discuss why training should usually be total-body, spread across the week, and conservative enough to avoid unnecessary soreness or injury while still building real capability. Travis explains how velocity-based training can keep athletes powerful without constantly maxing out, while Mike highlights exercise selection that "coaches itself," like front squats, goblet squats, kettlebell swings, thick-bar work, carries, and push presses. The big takeaway: tactical athletes do not need bodybuilding workouts or random hard training, they need specific, repeatable preparation that makes their body a reliable tool under pressure.
Links:
Doug Larson on Instagram
Coach Travis Mash on Instagram

In this episode, strength coach, educator, and IFAST co-founder Mike Robertson joins Doug Larson, Dr. Mike Lane, and Coach Travis Mash to talk about how serious lifters and athletes can train hard without destroying their bodies in the process. Mike shares his path from early T-Nation contributor to gym owner and longtime coach, explaining how his background in biomechanics shaped the way he evaluates movement, manages athletes, and builds training systems that support long-term performance. The crew also reflects on the early 2000s strength culture, the lessons learned from powerlifting, and why the best athletes often need a coach who can pull them back before ego, pain, or poor recovery catches up with them.
The conversation gets into the practical side of staying healthy while still pushing performance: using force plate data and velocity-based training to make better decisions, watching for early signs of breakdown, and creating different exercise "buckets" for days when the body feels great, okay, or beat up. Mike explains why loss of hip internal rotation, lack of movement variability, and constantly chasing load can eventually lead to back, hip, or knee issues, even if the athlete feels fine for years. The team also breaks down how to train around pain and injury, when to adjust instead of quit, and why smart movement, mobility, isometrics, sled work, and lower-stress training days can keep athletes moving forward without digging a deeper recovery hole.
Links:
Doug Larson on Instagram
Coach Travis Mash on Instagram